Bicycle stabilizer attachment



Filed June 17, 1949 Patented Oct. 24, 1950 BICYCLE STABEIZ-E TTAC MEKT VGIydewR. Kutil, Chicago, Ill-., 1.assignor to-AtwoodgVacuum .MachineCompany, Rockford, 111., a. -conpora tion-oi Illinois I Application Ju evjiiaisg SeriaENoB'99QG3Z This invention relates to a new and" improvedbicycle stabilizer attachment-designed to be tip-'- pliedto the rearaxleof a 'bieycle, to: provide lateral support gand thus vin event'. thebicycle tipping ever, whereby to facilitate a child learning to ride a-two-whe'eler" and to reduce to a minimum iikelihood or-injuryte childandj dam'aget re the bicycle." F a Thepr'inci pa-T object' -of myinvention is to pro vide a stabilizerfattachmentthat'is of'such si'm-Ipl'e' and economical construction that it may be reclaims; (01.280-293).

Ii -and l" are aplananda side-view, re

spectively of one: otthe'one-piece' sheet metal readily applied to andlater removed from the bicyclejand" either discarded or given away tosome other user, "the attachment representing such a small investment.This obj'ect'is attained byyforrning' each of a" pair of such attachingunleashe theclarnping'rneans for the out board Wheel supportingstandardfrom a single piece of slieet metal stampedand' bent to the termdesired. A further substantiar"saving in the cost of productionjof'theattachment 'is reattaching: brackets, "on allarger-scale. g {Thesamereference 'numerals" are applied to corresponding'parts"invthesepthreeviews. 1 v Referring; tothe: drawing, the reference numeral 6*.designa'tesZ-a bicycle, .on' the rear axle J- of which the: stabilizer-assemblies of my invem tion; indicated generally by' the' referencenumera1s8 and 9, are secure'd', assembly 8 onthe left hand side" andassembly 9-on the right hand hand side, the assembly 9' beingthecounterpart of assembly '8. Each assembly consists of an attaching: andsupporting or clamping bracket l0, astandard l,|;,and. an outboard wheelorroller l2. The bracket: 03in: accordance-with my invention, i'sstampedi and-formed from a single piece alized by'makingthetwowheelsupporting stand' ards separate inseam as integral a en -an inverted U-shaped yoke 'stra'ddling'the'bachwheel of the. bicycle, so that muchless'roid materiafis required" and-'1 a much hetter appearing attach:

i'nent' is;obtained theirodlused in each standard hav n fl s 1 11: ts erd e se is able rigidly clamping the ame at difierent elevations' withoutlikelihood of the standard having any tendency to turn; and the" l'ower'endpor mm; of the standard being bent outwardlyand providing" anaxleiportion' for"thefoutboard Another object isto provide anattachment'of the. kind mentioned which may. be easily, applied tq,.bicycle"bythe owner without. the necessity for elaborate instructions;andwhichincludesian adjustment f eature enabling quick: and easy ad- J'itme st e vati n' iine rd. wh l or rollers, inas smair stepsasrmay bedesired,

infinite adjustability beingafforded with th pres ent construction, iso'that 'as tth child" progresses inle'arning to ridethe bicyc these.wheelsrnay biimev w eh ee h gh as t was hind an if{rueinvennmiis-iimsda 'ifitheeqe mpany'e ingdr'a'wing'in I L Fig. l'lisa side view oflthe rearjportion of a bicycle equipped with astabilizer'made in. ac-

cordance with my invention, the stabilizer being n Fig; 2 is;a rear viewof Fig? 1', showing that the r 'hthand stabilizer assembl iscounterpart'oi 1; a providedfonthe Iertisidaand sh 1. in'its lovilestfadjustment; as fora" beginof sheetmet'al to: provide a torque assumingradius arm I B'reaching' forwardly from the main body portion f4 andhaving' inwardly bent lugs FE at its forwardextremityon its upper andlower edges to straddle the h'orizontal bar' I6' of the rear amassd-area therewith; and thusp'osi' tivefly' prevent turnin'g 'ofthebracket as a whole amund'the aXIe-W asa center... The main" body portionH h a hole I I therein'through which the "endiportion oi -the axle-1'1is arranged to extend. "The body p'o'rti'orr I 4 is bent'at rightangles,

at t8',"t o"define -a vertiea'lend' wall' 'l 9*; and is bent again atrig-ht angie yas at'20;to define an outer vertical wall 21 of a'verticalguide 22 inwhich the upper end orubnfzi of the standard is slid ablef'ofvrticaladjustment of the outboard wheel l2. The standardl lis madeof square rod material, and its outwardly bent lower end por-' tion 24is formed to provide an integral axle portion 25 'on the outer end'thereof for the wheel i2," While the; verticalupper end portion 23 hasits flat oppositesides" 26" disposedin surfacetc i surface abutment withthe inner and outer side Walls of the guide'22; whereby positively topre vent turning: of the standard when the nut 2'l ldn theaxlej istightened.' The outer side Wall 2 l'p is bent inwardly, a s at "28',"todefine another walljfi for the" guide 22 opposite the'end wall l9, moreclosely to confine thestandardflll intheguide 2 2 and en abletighterfa'nd' more rigid clamping. fltiere is "another bend at 30 todefinethefclamp; ing pad. portionf 3! in spa'ced'parallel' relationtothe inner wallof the'fguide 22, this pad portion lrl'aving a hole 32provided therein in register with thehole ll'throughlwhich'the axle 1extends, as shown in Fig.1; Acott'er pinj 33 entered through ajhole inthe "outer end ofthe axle portion 25 on each standard" H cooperates.with; washers 34 to prevent outwardv displacement of the wheel l2 .f

In operation, the nuts 21 are removed from the axle 1 to permitapplication of the stabilizer assemblies 8 and 9 to the opposite ends ofthe axle on opposite sides of the bicycle. Lugs l5 straddle thehorizontal bars l6 of the rear fork to prevent turning of the bracketsl0' around the axle I as a center so that the standards H carryingwheels l2 will be quite rigid and the wheels will 7 accordingly beadequately supported to perform the stabilizing function. The nuts 21are re-;

placed on the opposite ends of the axle and are tightened only after thestandards 'l'l have been adjusted up or down to dispose the wheels I2 onboth sides of the bicycle at exactly the desired elevation. After thechild has learned to" balance the bicycle well enough so that there 2will be less danger of tipping, the standards l'l moved and' eitherdiscarded or presentedv to someone else, inasmuch as they represent sucha small investment. The fact that the assemblies 8 and 9 are separateand independent isof advantage not only from the cost standpoint, butalso from the standpoint of better appearance on the bicycle and lessinconvenience to the child, especially when there is a rear luggagecarrier, over which the upper end portion of an inverted U-shaped yokewould have to extend if the standards were providedas integral arms ofsuch a yoke, as in some prior constructions. A g W selected elevation;

In conclusion, the fact that. the rear axle, 1 is used for the mountingof thev brackets; lfl is of greatadvantage, because it avoids theneedfor marring the finish :on the bicycle frame and' makes double use, ofthe nuts 21 on the-axle.

It is believed the foregoing description-conveys a good understandingofthe objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims havebeen drawn to cover all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a sheet-inet al bracket comprising amain body portion having an elongated radius arm extending from its oneend which arm terminates, in a forked portion opening laterall therefromadapted fori re ception of a bar on one side of a bicycleir'ear fork,

the other end portion of said body portion being bent upon itself so asto define a clamping loop adapted-toreceive a wheel supporting standard,the body portion and its bent end portion having registering openingsprovided therein adapted to receive the rear axle of the 'bicycle'l," 1f 2. Supporting means for bicycles and 'like veihicles comprising abracket adapted. 't0 be secured on one end of an axle of the vehicle bymeans of the nut that is' threaded thereon, said bracket having a holeprovided therein through which the axle is arranged to project and alsohaving means adapted to be connected to a portion of thevehicle frame innearby spaced relation to the, axle to prevent angular displace.- mentof the bracket around said axle as an axis;

a substantially vertical standard of L-shape carrying an outboard wheelon the outer end of the substantially horizontal outwardly reaching legthereof, and clamping means adapted to engage said standard attachablewith the bracket to the axle andutilizing the'"'aforesaid nut threadedon said axle as the tightening means therefor for rigidly clamping thesubstantially vertical leg of said standard to said bracket with freedomfor infinite vertical adjustment relative to said bracket so as tosupport the outboard wheel at a selected elevation.

3. Supporting-'me ans as set forth in the preceding claim'"wh'erein thevertical leg of said standard has-a.flat formed thereon for abutment byone of the clamping means and bracket to prevent rotation of thestandard about a vertical axis from an operative position in which the:horizontalg-leg of the; standard is substantially parallelto thevehicle:axle. v I v v .4. Supportingmeans for bicycles and like vehiclescomprising an-xelongated bracket adapted to be secured at one end. onone end of an axle of the vehicle by means of thenut that is threadedthereon and formed at the other end for abutment with a nearby portionofthe ver hicle frame to prevent angular displacement of the bracketaround said; axle, as a center, said bracket having at the axlereceiving end a generally U-shaped clamp portion having registeringholes in the arms of the U through which thevaxle is arranged to projectso that when the nut threaded on the axle is tightened against the sameit serves both to securethe bracket in place and-to compress the clampportion, and a substantially vertical standard of L-shape car.- rying anoutboard wheel on the outer end of the substantially horizontaloutwardly .reache ing leg thereof, the substantially vertical leg ofsaid standard being slidably received in 'andad-ijustably but rigidlyclamped in the, clamp portion ,of. said bracket maintaining the wheel,'at,a

5. Supporting meansfora bicycle and like ive' 5 hicle adapted to bedetachably. applied tothe outer end ofthe rear axleofth'e .yehicle 'andadjustably fixed to the rear; forklportion of said vehicle by means ,ofI'a fast'eningnut threaded on said rear axle,fsaid.supporting; means comprising .a generally 'L -shaped structure, whose horizontal 'legportionincludes. an auxiliary axle member disposed below and outwardly from theend of the vehicle rear. axle and carrying a'nolitboard wheel on theouter end portion thereof at a selected elevationf off the grounddepending upon the vertical adjustment given said auxiliary axlemembenl' the' vertical legwportion' of said structure. including; abracket member support-- ing the outboard wheel and its axle andadjustably. fixed by clampin'g' engagement withfsaid rear fork portionof said vehicle and heldin' jsuch engagement by said; nut when the 'sameis tightend on said vehicle. axle," ,one'1of said' auxiliary axle andbracketniembers being freely adjustable vertically relativeto saidvehicle rear axle when said nut is 'loosenedwher'eby 'said outboardwheel, may be adjusted to a"s'elected elevation. 1.6.,Su'pportingnineans for-bicyclesand the like vehicles comprising a!bracket adapted ,to. be secured on one end of an axle of the vehicle bymeans of the nutthat is threaded thereon, said bracket haying .a holeprovided therein; through which the axle is arr'anged to' project and.also

having means'adapted'to be connected tofa por tion of the vehicle framein nearby'spaced rela 3 tion to tl'i'e' axle tdpreventangulardisplacement of the bracket around saidzaxle as an axis;a'1gen1- erallyupright standard; :of: generally! 'izgshaue carrying vair-outboard.wheelbni-tlie outerreud of the substantially. horizontal outwardly;reaching leg thereof, and securingmeansadapted to engage said standardattachable with the bracket to the axle and utilizing'the aforesaid: nutthreaded on said axle -asthe tighteniiigtmeans therefor for rigidlysecuring the substantially vertical leg of said standard to said bracketwith freedom for infinite vertical adjustment relative to said bracketso as to support the outboard wheel at a selected elevation.

7. Supporting means for bicycles and like vehicles comprising a bracketadapted to be secured on one end of an axle of the vehicle by means ofthe nut that is threaded thereon, said bracket having a hole providedtherein through which the axle is arranged to project and also havingmeans adapted to be connected to a portion of the vehicle frame innearby spaced relation to the axle to prevent angular displacement ofthe bracket around said axle as an axis, a substantially verticalstandard of L-shape carrying an outboard wheel on the outer end of thesubstantially horizontal outwardly reaching leg thereof, and meansattachable with the bracket to the axle and utilizing the aforesaid nutthreaded on said axle as the tightening means therefor for rigidlysecuring the substantially vertical leg of said standard to said bracketmaintaining the outboard wheel at a selected elevation.

8. Supporting means for bicycles and like vehicles comprising a bracketmember adapted to be secured on one end of an axle of the vehicle bymeans of the nut that is threaded thereon, said bracket member having ahole provided therein through which the axle is arranged to project andalso having means adapted to be connected to a portion of the vehicleframe in nearby spaced relation to the axle to prevent angulardisplacement of the bracket member around said axle as an axis, and anauxiliary axle member disposed horizontally below and alongside thevehicle axle and carrying an outboard wheel on the outer end thereof ata selected elevation off the ground depending upon the verticaladjustment given said auxiliary axle member, said bracket membersupporting the outboard wheel and its axle and adjustably fixed byclamping engagement with the frame of the vehicle and held in suchengagement by said nut when the same is tightened on said axle, one ofsaid bracket and auxiliary axle members being freely adjustablevertically relative to said axle when said nut is loosened, whereby saidoutboard wheel may be adjusted to a selected elevation.

9. Supporting means for bicycles and like vehicles comprising a bracketmember adapted to be secured on one end of an axle of the vehicle bymeans of the nut that is threaded thereon, said bracket member havingmeans adapted to be connected to a portion of the vehicle frame near theaxle to prevent angular displacement of the bracket member fromoperative position relative to the frame, and an auxiliary axle membercarried by the bracket member and disposed horizontally below andalongside the vehicle axle and carrying an outboard wheel on the outerend thereof at a selected elevation off the ground depending upon thevertical adjustment given said auxiliary axle member, said bracketmember supporting the outboard wheel and its axle and adjustably fixedby clamping engagement with the ifram of jthe vehicle and held in suche'ngage merit-by said nut when thesame-istightened on said-axle, one ofsaid-bracket andjauxiliary axle members being freely adjustablevertically relativto'said axlewhen' said nut is loosened, whereby saidoutboardwheelmay be adjusted to a selected elevation.

aria-101i Supportingmeans. as-set forth in claim 9 wherein the verticalleg of said standard has a flat formed thereon for abutment by one ofthe clamping means and bracket to prevent rotation of the standard abouta vertical axis from an operative position in which the horizontal legof the standard is substantially parallel to the vehicle axle.

11. Supporting means as set forth in claim 4, wherein the arms of theU-shaped clamp por tion on the bracket are substantially parallel andthe vertical leg ofthe standard has substantially parallel flats formedon opposite sides thereof for abutment therewith to prevent rotation ofthe standard about a vertical axis.

12. Supporting means for bicycles and like vehicles having a rear wheelaxle comprising a generally U-shaped clamp bracket adapted to be securedon one end of the rear wheel axle of the vehicle by means of the nutthat is threaded thereon, said clamp bracket having registering holes inthe arms of the U through which the rear wheel axle is arranged toproject so that when the nut threaded on the axle is tightened againstthe same it serves both to secure the bracket in place and to compressthe same, an outboard wheel, and a wheel supporting axle carried on asupporting means which includes an upright, which is slidably receivedin and adjustably clamped by said bracket.

13. As an article of manufacture, a sheet metal bracket comprising amain body portion having an elongated radius arm extending from its oneend, which arm is formed for connection with a bar on one side of abicycle rear fork, the other end portion of said body portion being bentupon itself so as to define a clamping loop adapted to receive a wheelsupporting standard, the body portion and its bent end portion havingregistering openings provided therein adapted to receive the rear axleof the bicycle.

14. Supporting means for a bicycle and like vehicle adapted to bedetachably applied to the outer end of the rear axle of the vehicle andadjustably fixed to the rear fork portion of said vehicle by means of afastening nut threaded on said rear axle, said supporting meanscomprising a generally L-shaped structure, whose horizontal leg portionincludes an auxiliary axle member disposed below and outwardly from theend of the vehicle rear axle and carrying an outboard wheel on the outerend portion thereof at a selected elevation off the ground dependingupon the vertical adjustment given said auxiliary axle member, thevertical leg portion of said structure including a bracket membersupporting the outboard wheel and its axle and adjustably fixed byclamping engagement with said rear fork portion of said vehicle and heldin such engagement by said nut when the same is tightened on saidvehicle axle, one of said auxiliary axle and bracket members beingfreely adjustable vertically relative to said vehicle rear axle whensaid nut is loosened, whereby said outboard wheel may be adjusted to aselected elevation, the vertical leg portion of said L-shaped structurealso including means on one of said bracket and auxiliary axle membersadapted to haw-abutment with anemia portion 0!. said STATESYPA'I'ENIS-imtls; imspaced-melation to the vehicle axle: to "Number Name I Date I IMorehouse abwtlihwemclfi axle avcenter- 581:575 2 Douglass. "-11-: Apr27: 1897 vi CLYDE is 609 174 'Ihurst0n '.Aug-. 16,1898 REFERENCES CI TEDFOREIGN PATENTS The' following' references are of record in the NumberCountry Date file' of thispatent: 689,864 France June 3, 1930 F I!)703,084 Fxjance V Y Y Feb. 2, 1931

